Real Steel: Challenge
by redamiB6147
Summary: My response to a challenge posted by NoelAnderson. Max gets nabbed by Ricky and Charlie wants him back. What will happen?
1. Kidnapped!

**A/N: So, this is my response to a challenge posted by NoelAnderson. the challenge is as follows: **

**After the Twin Cities fight, when Ricky came with his men to get his money from Charlie, what if Ricky already knew Charlie had a kid, and that Max was his kid? He came prepared to take Max from Charlie, knowing that after all the fights they preformed in, Max was worth a lot of money. As Ricky and one of his men beat up Charlie, the other one goes for Max and forcefully carries him away while Charlie tries to get away from Ricky to save him, but he doesn't succeed.**

** Ricky leaves Charlie half dead on the street and takes off with Max. How will Charlie get him back?**

**Enjoy~**

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><p>It took Charlie four hours to find the strength to move.<p>

They took Max. That Texas pig had known he was Charlie's kid. He thought he was worth a lot of money.

At least to Charlie. But they took all of their hard earned money as well.

What was he going to tell Debra and Marvin when they returned from Italy? What was he going to tell Bailey?

Most importantly, what would she tell him?

"Don't let him go so easily. He wouldn't give up on you. Well, he might, but he loves you, Charlie. Don't give up on that. Find him."

That's what he should do. Not give up.

Charlie groaned, stumbling into the back of the WRB building. No one seemed to notice him, or the fact he left with a child and came back alone. All of the scheduled fights were over; everyone not involved with the robots had left.

Charlie limped into Atom's room, glad to see the robot was where he had left him. The swine couldn't get into the restricted part of the WRB to take Atom, so he took the next best thing.

He wasn't keeping him. But how was he going to get his son back?

Charlie pulled up a rolling stool in front of the still bot. He looked towards Atom, getting up stiffly and moving to his back. He unplugged the robot, powering him up and setting him on Shadow Mode.

Atom powered up with a audible whir of fans and motors coming online. His blue eyes locked onto Charlie, who was once again sitting on the stool. Atom moved his arm so that it was gripping his shoulder, mimicking Charlie.

"I know you cant understand me. Hell, I don't even know why I'm doing this. You are a robot. A fancy machine. There's nothing inside you but parts and programs." Charlie said, letting go of his arm. He shifted slightly, watching as Atom moved with him. It never ceased to amaze him how humanlike the behaviors were. But then again, he was watching Charlie do these things in front of him. Atom sat, quiet and patient.

"But the kid believes in you. Max believes in you. So I need to believe too. " Charlie said, leaning back on the stool and looking Atom straight in the eyes as Atom shifted closer.

"He took my son. He took your trainer. Your….friend." He said, wincing when he heard that out loud. He looked towards the door, which was wide open to see if anyone was walking past. Nothing stirred. He stood up, , turning back to Atom as Atom did the same, his head cocked slightly to the side as if to say' what are you getting at?'

"I'm going to need help getting him back." He said, and his eyes widened in shock as Atom nodded, just slightly, and one of his eyes dimmed then brightened again. If Charlie had blinked he would have missed it.

"You know, if Max was here, he would say something along the lines of ' I knew it' but I'm just going to let that one slide." Charlie said, and he shook his head, laughing when Atom mimicked him.

"First, we are going to need help." Charlie said, and he reached for his phone. He tapped on Bailey's number, waiting anxiously as I rang multiple times. Bailey finally picked up.

"Ello?" She said her voice thick with sleep. Charlie smiled briefly, thinking of her in bed with a t-shirt and sleep pants.

"Hey Bailey. It's Charlie/" He said, watching Atom 'talk' on his imaginary phone. He smiled again, hissing as his split lip ripped open again. He was reaching for a random rag to blot at the blood when Bailey spoke.

"What did you do this time?" she asked her voice full of anger. Charlie sighed, sitting on the stool again. Atom proceeded to almost sit and crush one of the very expensive tools lying on the table.

"I got mugged, Bailey. They took my money….and Max." Charlie said, bracing for a verbal beating.

It never came. There was quiet breathing over the phone for a few minutes. Charlie waited.

"Who is they, Charles." She said her voice quiet and full of menace. Charlie flinched; he was only called Charles when he was in trouble.

"Ricky. Jumped us in the parking lot, him and two of his goons. They knew Max was my kid, Bailey. I tried to save him I really did. I beat his two goons back for a few seconds but it's been so long." he said, his voice thick with emotion. Again there was silence.

"What for Charlie?" Why did he jump you? You didn't owe him money now did you?" she asked. Charlie looked at Atom, trying to think of the best way to put it.

"Yes. But I had the money. And he rigged my fight anyways." Charlie said, preparing for a verbal assault.

Again there was silence.

"Well there's not much I can do from here." Charlie sighed, his eyes closing as he leaned back slightly.

"Stay in New York, Bailey. I'll take care of this. I got him into this; I can get him out of it." Charlie said.

"Forget that. I'm coming to you. Stay there. Pick me up at the airport in the morning. I'll call you when I land." She said. Charlie sighed, running a hand over his face.

"Why?" he asked, watching Atom as he mimicked Charlie moving slowly from side to side.

"I'm protecting what's mine." She said, and she hung up. Charlie lowered his phone, Atom doing the same.

"Looks like we are picking up an important guest tomorrow, Atom. " He said, and he walked towards him, reaching for the remote.

He held the remote in his hand, looking down at it as he wiped at his eye. There must have been something in it.

"Time to go to sleep." He said. He then put Atom on remote, walking him out to his truck. He didn't have anything left in that room anyways. He wasn't going to stay to see if the Zeus challenge would be taken up. He set Atom up in the charging station, powering him down again as he buckled everything up for travel.

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><p>Max woke up in a moving van. He looked around, noting the two goons on either side of me. One of them was wiping away blood from a cut on their chin, and the other had a nasty swollen eye. Max smirked, knowing his dad did that.<p>

"You are going to be in so much trouble." He said, breaking the silence. Ricky laughed from the driver's seat, looking in the rear view mirror to see Max glaring right back.

"Look boys, its sleeping beauty!" he said, his Texas drawl thick on his words. Max rolled his eyes, looking at the two goons. Goon number one, named Pirate because of his eye, and goon number name of Polly, looked out of the window, disinterested in the child between them.

"Where are you taking me?" he asked, struggling against the seatbelt. His hands were tied behind his back, making things more difficult.

"Somewhere closer to home, boy." Ricky said, and Max looked out the driver's window at the darkness, trying to find out what that meant.

"Why did you kidnap me?" he asked, and Ricky laughed, again looking in the rear view mirror at the struggling kid.

"Kidnap's a strong word. Why don't we use borrow?" Ricky said, and he laughed again, driving faster into the night. Max fell silent, aware that this conversation was getting nowhere fast.

'_I hope my dad will get me.'_


	2. Handsome Misery

A/N: You guys are awesome! Anyways, if you arent reading my story Real Steel Rose, I'm alternating the posting of chapters in either stories. One story one night, teh other story the next, ect. Please review and tell em what you think!

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><p>"Why in the world would you just leave him, Charlie?" Bailey asked the second she laid eyes on him. Charlie took off his hat, wringing it in his hands as she walked closer, carrying her bag.<p>

"I tried to get him back Bailey, but the goons were too strong!" he said, and Bailey shook her head, walking past him and towards the exit.

"Where's your rust bucket?" She asked, and Charlie walked faster to lead her towards where he had parked. She climbed in, not commenting on the stuff in the passenger seat. Charlie started stuffing it behind him, looking at Atom's powered down form.

"So what's your plan?" she asked as they started to leave the parking lot, Charlie slowing down to pay his parking ticket. He didn't answer for a while. Bailey fidgeted; looking through the window to see Atom's powered down form. She watched the robot as they drove, waiting for Charlie's answer.

"Well, I know where he lives. I know where he will take Max. But I have no idea why he took him. He doesn't own any robots I know of. "Charlie said, and Bailey rolled around to stare at him, her eyes narrowing.

"You don't think, that with all that money he jacked from you, that he won't buy his own bot?" she said, and Charlie glanced at her, his face blank.

"Well, know that you mention it…" he said, and he cringed as she punched him really hard in the shoulder. He rubbed at the spot, looking towards her with astonishment.

"You still got an arm!" he said, and she punched him again, angry tears falling down her face.

"He's a good kid, Charlie! You can't just give up on him! Don't you need to get him back to New York soon anyways?" she said, punching him on the shoulder. Charlie tried to block, the truck swerving over the road. There was an angry beeping form a tiny care in the other lane, and Charlie quickly righted his truck's oath.

"Enough, Bailey, I understand. I got it, ok? I'm getting him back!" Charlie said, and Bailey slapped him on the shoulder this time. He hissed, rubbing at his shoulder as Bailey turned to watch Atom again.

"How, Charlie? It's just you, me and the bot." she said, and Charlie sighed, reaching into his pocket and pulling out his phone. He punched in a number, waiting as it rang.

"Hey man, look I need a favor. Ricky took something very dear to me. Yeah, Ricky Jackson. Took my kid and my money. Yeah, your money. Wanna help get it back? You keep all you get. Meet me over at the diner in town." Charlie hung up, looking at Bailey with a smug grin on his face.

"Yeah, it won't just be us. I got backup too." He said, and he let the silence wash over them both. They drove in the silence for a while.

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><p>"Hey there baby Kenton. Gotcha a new friend." Ricky said. Max had arrived in the middle of nowhere, Texas, late last night. He had fallen asleep sometime in the night, and he had woken up on a bed in a really uncomfortable position. His hands were numb when he woke. They were still tingly.<p>

He had gotten food, some sort of scrambled eggs with toast and slathered in white stuff that the man assured him was gravy, and then he was moved to the living room area of the house he was in. It was a large house. Max was betting on it being a ranch house, with live animals in the pens outside. A real Ranch.

"Well, aren't you excited? Don't you want to see him?" Ricky asked Max, getting into his face until Max could smell the slight whiskey scent that was almost overpowered by chewing tobacco. Max shook his head, his hand twisting behind his back. He wanted the binds off. His hands were going numb again.

"Well, he wants to meet you." Ricky said, and he walked out of the room, nodding to his two boys. They walked in, wrestling Max into a standing position, and they started pulling him towards the exit. He stumbled, trying ot walk with the heavy pace they set, but his legs were too short. He just let himself be dragged towards a barn, the horses and cattle moving out of their way and scattering into the other parts of the fields. He watched as they pulled open the doors, showing a gleaming red and gold robot sitting on his own charging station with the solar panels attached to the roof of the barn.

"Aint he gorgeous?" Ricky said, standing beside the robot. He rapped his knuckles on the thigh, letting the sound ring around the wooden barn. Max looked over the robot, noting some things that could be tweaked.

"I've fought better." Max said, walking forward slightly. The goons shadowed him. Ricky moved forward, looking at Max's arms. He shook his head, looking at his goons.

"Why is he still tied up? He can't really meet his new friend without his hands, now can he?" Ricky asked, and the goons quickly untied Max's hands. Max rubbed at his wrists, glaring at the taller men beside him. He walked forward, the men shadowing him.

"I need some breathing space." He said, turning and looking at the men behind him. They looked to Ricky for guidance, and he nodded.

"Listen to the little man." He said, and Max turned and walked towards the robot, his eye searching the sleek body before him. He circled the bot, but it as sitting, so it was about Atom's size.

"Like what you see?" Ricky said, and Max shrugged, reaching for the power cord and unhooking it. It started lifting plates, looking for the switch to turn it on. He finally found it under the right hip plate, switching it to on. The bot made the typical start up sounds, a orange light glowing form inside its chest plate and down its legs. It's head snapped up, its eyes glowing and searching for the person who turned it on. Max stepped away from its back as it stood up, walking in front of the bot.

"Now why did you wake him up?" Ricky asked, and Max waved his hand at the man, eyes locked on the robot. It watched him move, but it didn't make the same moves.

"He got a name?" Max asked, looking towards Ricky again. Ricky shrugged, his goons flanking him as he moved forward slightly.

"Handsome Misery." Max said, waking towards it. He tapped on the legs, frowning slightly as the bot wavered slightly at such a light touch. He reached for the tool kit that was right next to the charge station. Misery watched him move with just the turn of his head. Max picked up a drill, noting how rusty and unused it was. He sighed, starting it up and listening to the motor grind.

"What are these tools from before the millennium?" he asked, looking at Ricky. Misery stood patiently in front of Max.

"No, they came with him." Ricky said, watching the boy go to work. He tightened a loose panel on its thigh.

"He come with a remote too?" Max asked, and Ricky laughed, looking at his goons.

"Now isn't that what you are for, boy?" he asked, and he left the barn, his goons following. Max knew that they were sitting outside of the barn doors. He looked around the barn, seeing a bed and blankets on one side of the area. He started looking through the miscellaneous spare parts and tools in the bin next to the charging station, finding a remote with a cracked screen and missing part of one lever. He powered it on, seeing the image of Handsome Misery flickering on the screen. He turned one lever, and Misery punched with his left. He turned another and Misery punched with his right. Max smiled, playing around with the remote. He made Misery walk a full circle before he put him back before the charging station.

'_New__bot,__cool.__Stuck__with__Ricky__and__his__goons,__not__cool.__'_


End file.
